1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is related to a device for fixing the foot onto a sporting article of the snowboard, or skate board type, of the type comprising a boot, a base, catching members, rear ankle retaining assemblies as well as means for attaching it onto the selected sporting article.
2. Description of Background and Relevant Information
Such fixing devices intended to be mounted onto sporting articles such as snowboards are known, and they comprise a base, equipped with vertical retaining means for the boot, that rests directly on top of the sporting article, and at its center, it has a circular recess, along the upper edges of which is applied a supporting disc which is itself affixed onto the sporting article by virtue of screws. The upper edges of the circular opening of the base as well as the lower edges of the supporting disc have notched surfaces that cooperate with each other to allow, is when the screws are loosened, the orientation of the foot to be adjusted with respect to the axis of the sporting article so that the device can be adapted to various practices and to a variety of users. The means for retaining the boot on the base are constituted, as is the case, for instance, with snowboard bindings for flexible boots, also well known by the term shells, of straps which are generally two in number, and are positioned on top of the boot, one near the instep ant the other near the toe, each such strap generally comprising two separate sections, each of the sections being fixed by one of its ends to the base by virtue of anchoring means, constituted, for example, of screws, that cooperate with the drill holes present in the two vertical walls extending the base, on either side of the foot. The strap sections can be connected to each other via a tightening system borne by their other end and be substantially similar to a hook used for tightening alpine ski boots, which are also well known.
Such a device describing the prior state of the art is disclosed, for example, in the patent document WO 93/14835. It calls for manual intervention by the user when the boot is put on or tin off, the user being forced to bend in order to tighten the two straps on top of his boot once it has been positioned on the base. In addition, such a device forces the user to take off his boot and use a screwdriver if he wishes to change the angular adjustment of his bindings.
Other devices, such as described, for example, in the patent document WO 96/05894 add, beneath the sole of the boot, a rigid plate that projects on either side of the boot or therebelow and cooperates with the retaining means affixed to the sporting article. Although the configuration of these catching members provides a simple solution to the problem of putting on the boot, which can thus be done without using the hands, the presence of a plate beneath the sole causes the boot to stiffen, thereby adversely impacting its comfort, especially while walking.
It is an object of the invention to improve the ergonomics of devices such as described in the patent document WO 93/14835, by allowing the boot to be put on more quickly and with less strain, while at the same time retaining all the flexibility of the sole. In addition, it will allow the user to change the orientation of the foot with respect to the sporting article without having to remove the boot or use tools.
To this end, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention, such a fixing device comprises a base, equipped with a structural arrangement for adjusting the orientation of the foot with respect to the axis of the sporting article, front and rear retaining assemblies, front and rear guides, as well as mechanisms for releasing the foot, mechanisms for fixing it onto the sporting article, and a boot, whose sole can rest on the base, and equipped with front and rear catching members affixed to the boot. When the boot is put on, the front catching members of the boot rest on the front retaining assemblies in such a way that the boot can no longer be lifted or translated towards the rear. To this end, the front retaining assemblies have upwardly open U-shaped recesses, open towards the front, that receive the front catching members of the boot. Such members consist of projections that extend perpendicularly with respect to the axis of the foot at the level of the sole and beyond the edge thereof, so that they exceed the foot on either side. The rear catching members are then applied on the rear guides, and they follow, due to the pressure of the heel of the boots a trajectory during which the distance separating them from the front catching members increases substantially, thus resulting in an extension of the sole; thereafter they are applied onto the rear retaining assemblies when the heel of the sole comes into contact with the base. In this so-called locking position, the sole returns to its original length.
To this end, between its front and rear catching members, the sole of the boot has a connecting element present in the core of the sole, or constituted thereof and fixed to each of the catching members that are capable of being deformed substantially and elastically, when a stress is applied thereupon along a longitudinal axis.
The rear catching members consist of an axis crossing the sole and bearing, on either side, wheels that are free to rotate. These wheels rotate, when the boot is put on, along a guide section borne by the rear guides.
According to another characteristic of the device, the releasing mechanism consists of at least one mobile element having limited clearance whose movement, which is caused manually by the user when he wants to remove his boot, affects at least one of the catching members, so as to elongate the sole to allow the catching members of the sole to come out from the base retaining assemblies.
According to another characteristic of the device, the base has an is arrangement to block the orientation of the foot, consisting of a latch equipped with an index that is translationally mobile inside the latch, elastic means to return the index to the lowered position, and an index manipulating member. On the other hand, the attachment member on the sporting article has openings capable of receiving the index so as to prevent the rotation of the base. A groove on the upper surface of the latch can receive the index manipulating member. Thus, when the manipulating member is engaged in the groove, the index is in the lowered position and it blocks the rotation of the base by being engaged in one of the openings of the attachment member. When the user wishes to modify the orientation of the foot, he pulls on the manipulating member, and can thus, without having to take off the boot, rotate his foot about a vertical axis and then block it into the more appropriate angular position.